City ramping up project on new Northgate bridge

Construction on a pedestrian/bike bridge over I-5 in Northgate is just one year away.

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The roughly 1,900-foot bridge will span all of I-5. It will connect North Seattle College to Northgate Mall and the future light rail station.

The Seattle Department of Transportation is holding a public comment period until April 16.

Originally 20 feet wide, current plans call for a 16-foot wide bridge. It will be 200 feet shorter than originally planned. It will have a more “open structure,” instead of being a tube/truss design.

The east approach will touch down near First Avenue NE. The west approach will begin next to the North Seattle College campus on North 100th Street.

Expected to be finished sometime in 2020, the pedestrian/bike bridge will connect Northwest Seattle with Sound Transit’s light rail service.

Scheduled to open in 2021, the Northgate light rail station will be located east of First Avenue NE, spanning NE 103rd Street. Construction began in 2017.

It’s likely the Northgate Mall will look different sometime after the bridge is finished. The owner, The Seattle Times originally reported, is “re-imaging” the property. There are plans to remove retail space to make room for office space. A new hotel is also in the works in the area, as are hundreds of housing units.

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